The Ides of March

     "It is with regret that I must say that I shall not be able to be among your guests on the fifteenth. It has more and more become my practice to devote to study the few hours remaining to me at the close of the day.
     I shall indeed, during your absence, seek to be useful to Calpurnia Piso in every way that I can. I think it well, however, that you consign her to the particular attention of others than myself, more active in the social life and less preoccupied by public business.



In this letter to Caesar, Brutus seems a bit jumpy in how he words things. I believe he feels great remorse for not being present at Caesar's future murder, but obviously not enough if he's making excuses as to why he won't be there. I believe Brutus loves Caesar as a friend, but doesn't have too much regret for letting things go the way they are going. Brutus, is in my opinion, a coward, and a terrible comrade.

The End

     It will be as if I never existed, he'd promised me.
     I felt the smooth wooden floor beneath my knees, and then the palms of my hands, and then it was pressed against the skin of my cheek. I hoped that I was fainting, but, to my disappointment, I didn't lose consciousness. The waves of pain that had only lapped at me before now reared high up and washed over my head, puling me under.
     I did not resurface.


     I like how in this passage, the author uses tone to describe the character's feelings. The author used the example of falling, and drowning, which add a dramatic effect, and a sad one. The author is revealing sadness, hopelessness, abandonment, and denial, which give the reader the same feelings. The tome is very depressing, and far from enlightening. I think it a good passage to exemplify tone in writing.